


Love Letters

by Aeralyn



Series: No Sound Requites the Years Behind Us [1]
Category: Critical Hit (Podcast)
Genre: Contrary to the title there is no romantic shipping, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, We're All Friends Here, as always this is not beta-read, magic best friends forever, torqletones are found family, we die like the sleep deprived nonbinary friends we truly are
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-13
Updated: 2018-10-13
Packaged: 2019-08-01 08:55:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16281512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aeralyn/pseuds/Aeralyn
Summary: What are two best friends to do when they're isolated on different planes of existence for five years? Invent the far-sending ritual, obviously. I mean, Randus picked up that ritual in between Lords of the Feywild and Legacy of Ghosts, and you will NEVER convince me that it wasn't at least partially because he wanted to stay in touch with Orem. Also, at 800GP per 25 word exchange, this is the most expensive texting plan ever.





	Love Letters

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there pals, I’m still alive. Wish I could say I’m back on my bullshit, but I’m NOT! That’s why the necessary happy ending for Known Liar has not been written yet. Just not feeling it.
> 
> Also, I can write from a non-Orem POV and this is PROOF.

Randus didn’t exactly have a lot of free time on his hands to stop and worry about his friends. He’d returned to Diamond Throne to aid the King in the civil war just as he’d promised. After all, he had no idea how to get back into the feywild, nor the resources to pursue it. He and Orem had never come up against an arcane challenge that could defy their combined efforts, but now, the distance between them was too great for his abilities to bridge. He could only hope that if they both worked at it alone, eventually one of them would break through. It was a cold, brittle hope, but he cradled it in his heart all the same.

***

Trelle was the first one he’d tried to contact when he made it back. Ket would probably need time to cool off, and since Trelle and Randus had stepped into the exit beam closer together, maybe they’d land closer together… or something. Randus hadn’t encountered this type of transportation before. He’d assumed they would end up in the same place, and since they hadn’t, he hadn’t the faintest idea where to begin looking or how far apart they might be, or even really where he was. Still, if his friends were nearby, they’d be safer together.

 _“Hey Trelle, It’s Randus. Did you land safely? Where are you? I think I’m near the Shieldspines. Heading for Diamond Throne. Want to meet up?”_ Randus completed the ritual and spoke his message firmly and clearly. Then he waited.

 _“MELORA’S DAINTY ANKLES! RANDUS! I’m okay, on a beach facing east. I have to head to the southern continent. Twilight guardian stuff. Take care of-“_ Trelle’s explosive shout made Randus flinch and then smile with relief in rapid succession. Her response was clipped mid-sentence when her 25 words ran out.

Randus sighed, the brief surge of happiness he felt at hearing Trelle’s voice guttering out when he realized that she was both pretty far away and not headed in his direction. Right. The argument they’d been having merely minutes ago flooded back to the forefront of his mind. Trelle had her own responsibilities, a mission that she’d not really seemed to want their company for. With the way things had been going in their group for the last little bit, it seemed fair. They hadn’t been getting along so smoothly, but that’s how it was with family. People said stupid thoughtless things; even to the people they loved most. Perhaps especially to the people they loved most.

Before starting the second sending ritual, he planned the message carefully, counting his words. He had two left, so he ended it as Orem liked to finish his when he had the words to spare.

_“Trelle, glad you’re okay. If you ever need anything at all, send word to Diamond Throne. Good luck, be safe, I’ll miss you. Love, Randus.”_

_“AWWW, RANDUS! Sorry I can’t come, I miss you already. Remember to eat, you nerd. I’ll do what I can to keep in touch but-“_

Randus had to chuckle, just a little, as Trelle’s sentence got clipped a second time. She would be okay, she had to be. Trelle was strong, smart, wonderful. She was good at making friends and finding her way. Trelle would absolutely be fine on her own, and if not, she at least knew where to find him. Randus took a deep breath, and then another, and settled his mind to the next task. Ket. He had enough ritual components for several more sendings, though he figured he’d better conserve some for emergencies. Having Orem hold nearly all of their supplies in the handy haversack had always seemed so logical and efficient, but now he was out in the middle of nowhere with no rations and hardly any supplies. 

_“Hey Ket, are you alright? Where did you land? I think I’m by the north edge of Shieldspines, and will be heading to Diamond Throne.”_

Randus waited, counting the seconds tensely. He received no reply. “Maybe he’s too far away?” Randus muttered to himself. He wasn’t used to being alone. He decided to try again. Another several minutes passed in silence before he decided he would have to move on. He would just have to hold out hope that Ket had landed somewhere safely in the prime material plane.

***

Getting arcane resources was all about spin in the war effort. Not really Randus’s area of expertise, getting the right person’s ear and finding just the right words to persuade them. Ket would probably know what to say, but for all his effort, Randus had never once been able to get a hold of the man. “He’s fine. He just… he went home, and wherever that is, it’s too far away. Why didn’t we ask?” Randus scrubbed at his bone-dry eyes in frustration, after yet another fruitless attempt to reach Ket. That made fifteen tries, spaced out over the six months since he’d returned to the prime material plane. He needed to sleep.

Trelle had passed out of his sending range months ago, off to the central continent, so he didn’t have much else to spend his personal resources on than trying to contact Ket intermittently. The treasury of Diamond Throne provided him materials for anything he did in the line of duty, and his limited personal funds wouldn’t cover the sort of advanced research he wanted, needed to be pursing. So instead he sent a futile message to Ket every other week or so, when he was feeling particularly optimistic, or when he traveled somewhere new. The king appreciated that Randus was eager to trek across the kingdom, switching between different fronts of the conflict. Truthfully, each time Randus was hoping that this time, this time _for sure_ he’d be in range of Ket. He’d find out what had become of his friend. But luck, it seemed, was never on his side. 

Just shy of a year after he’d returned, Randus finally found the right words and the right ear to pour them into. “My sending ritual, and the scrolls I’ve been making for you all, they’ve been very important in coordinating efforts between the eastern and southern fronts, but what with the increased distances between dispatches, it just isn’t reliable anymore.” Randus focused on making eye contact with General Loren. The woman was a natural tactician, and had risen rapidly to a position of high ranking command thanks to her uncanny ability to adopt and strategically integrate just the sorts of novel magic and technology Randus had been able to supply.

“Are you implying you could manage something better, Mr. Duthane?” She said coolly, leaning uncomfortably close to Randus to pin him with a measuring gaze. The fact that she was so physically imposing had also aided in her rise to command. Even knowing that she was one of his staunchest supporters on the council did little to alleviate her intimidating presence when she chose to invoke it.

“Ah- um, yes. That is. Based on my personal research, there should be a more powerful version of the ritual we’ve been using, that always succeeds regardless of distance. It. Uh, it costs more, but would provide infallible communications. I just need the materials to finish developing it, and then provided I receive the resources, I could provide spell scrolls of that instead of regular sending scrolls.” Randus struggled to keep his eyes locked with the general's. He hated politics so much.

“That would be ideal. You know, your abilities are being entirely underutilized. If you can develop and this ritual and perhaps teach it to a few people, you’d be freed up to fight at your full potential. I’ll see that you get your funding.” Loren shot him a horrifying wolfish grin that showed entirely too much of her teeth, stood, and bowed to him. “Pleasure working with you, Duthane.”

Randus was able to catch his breath once the general left the room. If he’d realized coming to help out the king would be so political, he’d have maybe gone about getting involved in a different way. It turned out to be quite hard, even for a publicly established hero, to waltz in and call one’s own shots. Luckily enough for Randus, his shy forays into diplomacy were finally bearing fruit.

***

 _“H-hey, Orem, it’s Randus. Testing out far-sending ritual, respond if you get this, say what plane you’re on… Really hope this works. I miss you.”_

After all the failed attempts to contact Ket, Randus couldn’t quite bring himself to agonize over what he would say in the first real trial run of the new ritual. The more time he poured into getting the message perfect, the more devastating his disappointment would be if he got no response. His heart was pounding as he finished speaking. Trails of smoke from the incense were curling all around him, a picture of the peace he couldn’t feel as he lapsed into silence and waited.

_“Randus! It’s been so long! In Feywild, Spring Wood, rebuilding the Cerulean Grove. Are you okay? What are you doing? Miss you too! Love, Orem.”_

Orem’s voice rang clearly through Randus’s mind. Finally, after over a year of worrying, he knew his best friend was safe. Giddy with the infinite possibilities abruptly unfurling before him, Randus gathered more ritual components and began a second sending.

_“So glad it worked! I’m fine, helping King of Diamond Throne with the civil war. How are you? And Kammis? Word from Torq? Love, Randus.”_

Randus squeezed words in his sending so he could fit the sign off, giddy with success. He could talk to Orem. They could share notes, and that meant they could solve _anything_. It would be expensive, but their little family would be together again for sure. It was too much to hope that there would be news from Torq, but Randus was so buoyed from his success that he couldn’t help but ask. 

_“Tried Torq a few times, thought I heard him say ‘whut?’ once. Feywild still dangerous, but we’re all surviving. Trying to find a way back.”_

The grief in Orem’s voice was as palpable as his joy had been in the previous response. Still, they could talk. That was something. Randus turned to his notes and poured over them feverishly, trying to find a way to condense his modification of the basic sending ritual into the smallest possible multiple of 25 words. Once Orem learned far-sending too, they could split the costs of communication and everything would be easier. They could start working in earnest on the real problem, reopening the trods between their respective planes of existence.

***

As the general had predicted, far-sending was as much a boon for Diamond Throne’s military as it was for Randus himself. Released from his duties as glorified courier, Randus was much more mobile now, able to participate in major battles and sort out the mind-controlled from the malicious among captured rebels. He had even found a way to release the minds of the unwilling, and the tide of the war seemed to be turning on it. The reward was substantial- Randus had enough ritual components to use far-sending perhaps not as often as he wanted to, but certainly much more frequently than before. 

The fragile spark of hope that Randus had been nurturing for the past year and half grew into a proper flame. Things were getting better in Diamond Throne. Randus had been given a dedicated space for arcane research, and someday soon he might even have time to use it. He and Orem were trading research notes, so even if they were both too busy to make much progress, they were at least not accidentally overlapping one another’s work. The problem of gathering the rest of the party still remained, however.

Randus had only far-sent to Ket once, right at midday. Unless the half-elf was away at the Kobold Alley or keeping a completely nocturnal schedule, he would have gotten the message. He should have been able to answer. He didn’t. It was bad enough that Trelle couldn’t rejoin them- she was still busy in the southern continent, and though things were going well for her there, she had twilight guardian business queuing up that would keep her busy for years. Ket being just gone, unreachable, was a bit terrifying. Maybe he’d never made it back from the feywild at all. Or maybe he’d finally met his match in the tournament.

_“Ket, if you’re alive and conscious you can definitely hear me this time. Please answer, we’re worried about you. Love, Randus. Orem says ‘Hello, Ket’.”_

Randus tried again, his message less formally planned this time. He was able to keep the anxiety from leeching into his voice, and even managed a passable imitation of Orem’s sarcastic greeting at the end. This time he’d waited until after dusk, sitting on a hillside and watching the stars slowly appear in the night sky before beginning the ritual.

This time, he gets a response.

_“Randus? Have you been trying to reach me this whole time? I’ve been working nights, back home. It’s a mess here. Glad you’re both okay.”_

Ket's voice is barely even a whisper, but it’s finally there. The words bring a palpable wave of relief flooding through Randus's veins. If only Torq could return to them everything would be perfect, in the way that nothing ever is. Randus considers sending a follow up message to Ket, but his components are running low, and there’s still a whole string of tomorrows stretching out in front of him. So much left to do before he can abandon his responsibilities here. Somewhere up ahead though, Randus can see a light beckoning him home. He’s found all of them that he can, his friends- his family. They’re still here. They’ll be together again someday, and for now, it’s enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Have you ever listened to a piece of music that so suffused you with melancholy that your bones began to ache? I've been listening to I Have Seen the Stars, by Jack de Quidt, from the Marielda soundtrack, which motivated my contemporaneous writing of three sort of sad things. The other two will eventually get added into this series when I finish them. It's a thematic organization thing, not a contiguous story thing.
> 
> The series name is taken from Battling the Years by my very favorite band, The Reign of Kindo.


End file.
